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The digital resources included on this wiki have been helpful to some educators across the state. However, due to the rapidly changing digital environment, NCDPI does not represent nor endorse that these resources are the exclusive digital resources for the purposes outlined on this wiki.

The new NC Digital Learning & Media Inventory (NC DLMI) goes live on April 11, 2016. The NC DLMI collects data for state and national reporting, to inform state and local budgets, and to assist in planning state and local digital learning efforts. Inventory questions are streamlined and aligned to the North Carolina Digital Learning Progress Rubric.

This inventory replaces the Annual Media & Technology Report (AMTR). Modernizing the AMTR is a critical component of moving the NC Digital Learning Plan forward. The new tool has built-in logic and navigation to allow for ease of data input. The login process for the NC DLMI is the same as the previous AMTR.

In addition to the new data collection tool, we are also working on a reporting tool that will provide access to data and customizable reports for LEAs, individual schools, and charter schools. The NC DLMI provides a valuable data source that complements the Digital Learning Progress Rubric, providing you with a comprehensive view of your digital teaching and learning programs.

The information collected in the NC DLMI is based on the school and district level digital learning and media resources in place by June 30 of each year. The data collected provides the legislature and the public a yearly snapshot of the state of digital learning and media programs in North Carolina's schools.

The early registration deadline for the Home Base Symposium, Feb. 10-12, is Jan. 22. We are expanding the focus to include course offerings across the Home Base suite. This year's symposium will be packed with new content, the latest and upcoming updates, presenters from the Home Base applications as well as across the field, and much more. All-day strands for PowerSchool, Schoolnet, Truenorthlogic and Canvas will be offered by field experts. The latest updates and sneak-peaks will be showcased throughout the sessions. To name just a few, other sessions will include Google Apps for Education integration, a BloomBoard & OCT overview, and what is to come with NCEdCloud and IAM. You don't want to miss this opportunity. Plan on attending and bring a well-rounded team to cull the information offered and return to your district bursting with fresh, new ways to utilize Home Base!

Digital Learning Day 2016 - February 17

Digital Learning Day 2016 is less than a month away! Join this nationwide celebration on February 17 and promote effective digital teaching and learning in NC schools! As you plan events at your school and in your district, be sure to visit our NCDLDay wiki for ideas and resources. On this wiki, you will find:

Do you have a webpage with professional development presentations and resources? On the professional learning wiki page, there is a form (and responses spreadsheet) where you can share your resources with all of NC! I’ve added my PD link to the spreadsheet as an example.

The following message was sent to MCNC’s z-scaler e-mail group on Tuesday, January 5th. This message contains information that will affect LEAs/schools planning to use Chromebooks for NCTest based assessments using a “common testing” Chromebook login. This is a suggested solution from MCNC concerning the recent login restrictions implemented by Google. PLEASE view the video message listed below in its entirety to ensure your configuration will appropriately support testing after the recent changes by Google. Zscaler configuration changes are also listed below.

A few notes concerning the video:
· Please only allow access to NCTest App for devices that will need to access NCTest.
· NCTest will not work on devices in “incognito” mode.
· The non-secure site for NCTest technical specifications is http://center.ncsu.edu/nct for the more detailed NCTest Support page, please click on the words “NCTest Support” throughout this page as it is a hotlink.

Thank you MCNC for continuing to support NC in online testing using NCTest! Please direct questions about this process and video to the contact info listed below the following original message.

Changes are needed for schools that have SSL enabled within Zscaler and are planning on using Chromebooks for online testing. If you are not using Chromebooks for testing and/or do not have SSL inspection enabled please disregard.

Recently Google has started shutting down accounts that would have multiple logins in a short amount of time. Many schools used this method last year for online testing; for instance, they would have an online testing login that would have 300+ students testing via that login at once. That scenario will not work this year with online testing.

In order to fix the situation at hand schools will have to use Chromebook Kiosk Mode in order to do online testing. See below for a video with instructions for Chromebook online testing setup

​SpeakUp SurveyWe want everyone to have a voice in the future of how technology is used in our schools - please share the Speak Up survey with your students, teachers, parents, administrators, community organizers, friends, and anyone who has a passion for improving education: bit.ly/SU15survey

Statewide Tech Directors' Meeting | November 20th, 2015Registration is open for the upcoming 2015 Fall Statewide DTL Meeting: for DTL Leaders by DTL Leaders on November 20, 2015 at Winston Salem/Forsyth County Schools 4801 Bethania Station Road, Winston-Salem, NC!

Lunch will be provided and we are setting up a table for sharing your favorite dessert with others! We will have LEA/Charter Leader led Chew and Chat sessions during the lunch hour with the following topics available to choose from:

Thanks to everyone who participated in the survey and especially those serving on the planning team. Information gathered from the survey and planning team members have shaped your program for the day!

Please note the topic areas and send appropriate district/charter leaders so that your district will benefit the most from the day! We ask that you only register 2 per LEA and 1 per Charter until November 10tth. We will then open registration with no limits if possible.

The DTL Division is looking forward to seeing you November 20th for a great day of knowledge sharing and learning (and a yummy shared dessert)!

The North Carolina Virtual Public School’s professional learning team is hosting a LEAD Ed Webinar Series. This series of webinars will be informative and thought-provoking as participants build a strong foundation of online and blended learning expertise.

Topics include:
Keeping the Technology Invisible
Supporting the Teacher in an Online and Blended Learning Environment
Cyberbullying
How to Effectively Individualize Learning for Online and Blended Learning Classrooms

More information about these great learning experiences are available on the NCVPS Website.

November Canvas Roadshow

You're invited to join us for our upcoming November Canvas Roadshow, where you'll have a chance to get excited and informed about Canvas LMS and meet with other Canvas users in your region.
Please review the information below, and invite other administrators and lead instructors in your district to join you. (Space is limited, so be sure to focus on those in your district who will take full advantage of the opportunity.)
Event summary and RSVP / registration links:
Learn how to enrich your instruction with Canvas at the November 2015 Canvas Roadshow: We will focus on how early users can employ the Canvas LMS in their classroom to support and enhance instruction and boost classroom efficiency, and how schools can plan for success. Come for some hands-on practice, and take practical know-how and experience home with you. District and school administrators, and teachers with leadership, training, mentor or pilot roles are invited to the 3-hour workshop most convenient for them. Please RSVP for one of the locations and times below:
Monday November 9: Beaufort County
Tuesday November 10: Carteret County
Thursday November 12: Wilkes County
Friday November 13: Cabarrus County
Quin Swallow | Customer Success
E-mail: qswallow@instructure.com | Office and Mobile: 801-658-7573

More than 500,000 students, parents and teachers will share their views on technology and learning to inform policy at the local, state and national levels as part of the 13th annual Speak Up National Research Project.

Between now and December 18th, all K-12 students, parents, teachers, administrators and community members in North Carolina have the opportunity to participate in the online surveys.
To manage your school or district information and obtain free, online access to your school or district’s aggregated results, your registration must be activated with a primary contact by registering on the Speak Up website. The district/school timeline is a great tool to help you prepare for the Speak Up survey period.

Project Tomorrow | Speak Up

Ensuring that today’s students are well prepared to be tomorrow’s innovators, leaders and engaged citizens of the world. The Speak Up data represents the largest ...

Hold the Date – November 20, 2015 Statewide DTL Leader Meeting
If you completed the NCTIES Leader meeting feedback survey this past March you may recall that we asked if you would like to have a Fall meeting. The response was highly in favor of having this additional statewide meeting. Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools has graciously made their facilities available for our meeting November 20th. Thanks so much Kevin and Heather!
Address:
Winston Salem/Forsyth County Schools
4801 Bethania Station Road, Winston-Salem, NC
Time: 9:30 am – 3:00 pm
Please mark your calendar for November 20th and look for more info soon including registration and agenda!

AMTR
Thank you for your diligence with the work of keeping the Annual Media and Technology Report (AMTR) current for your district. We are approaching the one year anniversary of the launch of the revised version and are listening to your feedback. After much examination and collaboration with our stakeholders, our last update saw a reduction in 40% of required questions, and the inclusion of questions that address current aspects of the digital transition. We are still listening.
In an effort to make this instrument more valuable to the process of the digital transition, we are working to render it to be even more efficient, accessible and interactive for the public. To this end we are seeking solutions to provide front-facing analytics as an option, and to streamline this process further. For this reason, the AMTR will be closed until February of 2016. You will still be able to access the site to view your LEA and school data, but the “save” function will be disabled.

We will continue to update you on the progress of our work and will be seeking feedback from you periodically during this process. We are excited about the possibilities that lie ahead for the AMTR and look forward to sharing it with you.

NCTest Online Assessment Updates October 2015:

TNN – iPad App available for NCTest online assessments
The NCTest iPad App v.4 is now available for all Online End-of-Course (EOC) and North Carolina Final Exam (NCFE) Assessment administrations.

The NCTest iPad App can be obtained or updated in the Apple App Store. If you have already installed a previous version, it must be updated to version 4 before use for EOC/NCFE assessment activities. Please be mindful of the iPad Restrictions Configuration found at https://center.ncsu.edu/nct, click on NCTest Support, scroll down to iPad in the chart and click on hotlinks. Note, the NCTest iPad App is approved for use with iOS 7+ to include iOS 9.
New iPad App features

The iPad App supports Large Font and pinch-zoom functionality for all assessments. However, additional scrolling may be needed for students to view items and read selections in their entirety. It is recommended that students be given an opportunity to view the Large Font versions of the Tutorial and the Released Forms on the iPad and other approved devices to determine the best online testing option for the student.

Pinch-zoom functionality is available for all students including those with regular font and those marked as large-font in the Student Information Questions (SIQ).

Students needing large font should take the online tutorial with large font to determine if this setting meets their needs. If Large Font is determined to be needed for a student, Teachers or Test Coordinators can add the Large Font SIQ flag for the student in the SIQ tab on days prior to test administration (cannot be added on test day).

Highlight functionality has been increased by allowing highlighting on more areas of the item.

Notes about iPads and NCTest

Additional scrolling may be required on the iPad

If students rotate devices after highlighting, an error will inform them that existing highlighting will be lost after the orientation change for that item/passage.

Rotation between portrait and landscape may result in a smaller or larger screen size than what was visible in the previous orientation. This is quickly and easily fixed by pinching the screen.

Registration for the 2016 NCET Conference is now OPEN!! Registration payments will be done a little different this year. Any registrations paid PRIOR to February 1st, 2016 will remain the $75 per person that it has been in the past. Registration payments received after February 1st, 2016 will be $85 per person. The conference is being hosted at the same location as last year so please make note of that below:

Classes
We have had several great class recommendations come in from our evaluations for last year but we are looking for even more! If you have an idea for a class you would like to see or even better TEACH, let us know. Use the form below to submit your ideas....

Schedule and class information will be posted to the NCET Website by January 1, 2016. The Village Inn hotel sells out quickly so make sure to register and make your reservations as early as possible.
Thank you, NCET Board board@ncet.net

ARCHIVED DATES

September 8-11, 2015 - Back 2 School Lunch and Learns (Northwest and West Regions: September 11)

REGIONAL CHANGES
With the region shifts that took effect July 1, the Northwest Region has quite a few changes. In addition to the regional line changes, the regions will now be referred to by name instead of number, so rather than “Region 7,” we are now the “Northwest Region.” (See attached .pdf to see the entire state map.) Here’s how our region looks now:

Included in Northwest Region:
Alexander
Alleghany
Ashe
Avery
Burke
Caldwell
Catawba
Hickory City
McDowell (joining us from the West Region)
Mitchell (joining us from the West Region)
Newton-Conover
NC School for the Deaf
Watauga
Wilkes
Yancey (joining us from the West Region)
Bridges Academy (Charter)
Williams Academy (Charter)
Grandfather Academy (Charter)
New Dimensions (Charter)
Two Rivers Community (Charter)

New adventure!
Best wishes to Sheila Jenkins, previous Director of Technology in Alexander County Schools, who is now serving as Principal of Northview IB Middle School in Iredell-Statesville Schools.

NORTHWEST SURVEY

As I make plans for the coming school year, I want to hear from you! Please complete this survey to provide me with information about your preferences for regional meetings, professional learning opportunities, and more.